Unwilling Saviour
by ddjjm
Summary: AU. The wizarding world treats Harry as its property. He does not like it, but he cannot do anything about it now... Time-travel fic
1. Return

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I make money with this fic.

_A/N:_ This is the first chapter of my first fic, Unwilling Saviour. Hope it is not too bad.

**Chapter 1: Return**

Albus Dumbledore sighed as he watched the sunset through the window of his office. In a few short hours, hundreds of young minds would arrive to start the new year of their education, and he did not have much good news to share at the start-of-term feast.

It all started almost ten years ago, when some novice journalist heard from the muggle news that Harry Potter was found buried in the garden at his relatives' house. Since he was the one who placed him there, the Wizarding World – rightfully – blamed him for the death of their Hero. In the next few years he was stripped from his various titles, and – most importantly – his Chocolate Frog Card. He could barely keep the position of Headmaster of Hogwarts, but he knew it will not last much longer.

After that came a series of events that further demolished the trust he was given. The escape of one Sirius Black, the death of a member of the faculty and the rampage of a Basilisk in the corridors were all disasters everyone could live without. Three of his students in those cases got involved; one of them got convicted for opening the Chamber of Secrets and sentenced to fifteen years in Azkaban, while two others were ridiculed for the better part of a year for believing in the innocence of Black.

Recent events were not less alarming for the old headmaster. Disappearances were more and more common, and people were afraid that maybe another Dark Lord was behind it all. To tell the truth, Dumbledore was afraid of that possibility too. Now he head to tell these young students that he had resigned from the post of Headmaster, leaving after the school year ends next June.

"Am I not interrupting anything, Albus?" asked a familiar voice from the direction of the door.

"Of course not, Minerva. Everything is going well, I presume?" inquired the ancient wizard.

"Well, the kitchen is ready as always and the train is arriving at the appointed time. However, two of the students are reported missing by the Head Girl."

"Who are they? Have they left the Platform? Did the parents say something?"

"Susan Bones and Daphne Greengrass, and neither of them were seen on the train. They are not sure whether they were on the Platform. Shall I call their parents?"

"That is not necessary. I will speak with them immediately. You should prepare for the reception of our first years. If that is all, Minerva, I will see you at the feast."

As he heard the door closing, he reread the letter he got yesterday afternoon from the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, in which she politely but firmly requested to be present at the Sorting. He sighed again. _This would not be happening if Potter was alive,_ he thought. He could only keep his job for one more year if he agreed a Ministry appointed Defence instructor – Dolores Umbridge. Now that two Ministry officials would be present at Hogwarts – however short time it may be – he had to be on his guard. One more mistake and he wouldn't even have to deliver the yearly opening speech.

-oOoOo-

"Good evening, Amelia."

"Good evening, Albus," came the reply from the other side of the gate.

"We have a lovely evening, don't you think? I cannot even remember when I saw that many stars without a telescope."

"Yes, quite," replied Amelia, "but that's not what I'd like to discuss with you before the feast."

"Yes, I had that feeling. Tell me, Amelia, do you know the whereabouts of your niece? The Head Girl said she didn't see her on the train at all."

"I wanted to inform you that she will be here on time, but it must have slipped my mind. Don't worry about her or Daphne, they will be here."

"That is good to hear. So, what do I owe this visit from your department?" asked Dumbledore.

"I am here to examine the quality of education your students receive. Did you know that we will have to expand our Auror Academy? The applicants are so bad at Defence and Potions; we had to add an extra year to their training. This cannot go much longer! My Aurors are barely able to capture simple criminals! I don't know what you did in all those years but apparently it was not good enough. Now I heard Fudge got you to hire a bureaucrat as a teacher. You know what goes on out there, probably more than me. Is there nothing you could do?"

"Alas, no. I tried everything I could, but I do not possess the same political weight I used to. Even if I agreed to resign now, she would still be teaching Defence, on top of being the new Headmistress. I would really like to continue this discussion, but I have my own obligation I have to attend. You should take your place at the Head Table. I will join you momentarily."

-oOoOo-

The chatter after the Sorting started to lull when Dumbledore stood to give his customary speech.

"To those who just began the long journey to knowledge, welcome here at Hogwarts! To you, older students, welcome back! I expect everyone wants to get to the feast but I have to bore you just a few minutes. I'd like to introduce Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. She is here as my guest, and – sadly – only for the night. Dolores Umbridge is also among us, she will be your new Defence Professor. Now that…"

"Hem, hem," could be heard from the pink toad-like woman, who was not much taller standing than sitting. She opened her mouth to continue when she caught the eye of Madame Bones, and decided to sit back and allow the speech to continue.

"Quite right, Professor Umbridge," continued Dumbledore, "I almost forgot. The Forbidden Forest is off limits this year too, but I fail to understand why anyone would wish to go there." The gaze directed at the Weasley twins was not missed by most. "There is also an updated list of banned items at Mr Filch's office, where every inquisitive mind can read it. He also requested me to remind you, no magic at the corridors. Now I assure you, this will be my last announcement for the night. With the Board of Governors we came to an agreement about my retirement. This means that this is my last year as Headmaster of Hogwarts."

Dead silence ruled in the Hall. No one dared utter a word, the shock was complete. Even the Slytherins respected Dumbledore to a degree; he was, after all, one of the most powerful wizards alive. People even missed the gleeful expressions of one Professor and a few students.

"I think you just broke them," said a male voice in a mock whisper while clapping. "You know, this Hall is fantastic. I heard about it, but that's just not the same. This ceiling is magnificent. How much power does it require?"

Every head spun to the other end of the hall. Four cloaked figures stood at the door, in front of the Headmaster. The tallest of them – who spoke – stood in front of the others, facing the teachers. His cloak was deep green, almost black, with a hood covering his face.

"Who are you? How did you get in? What business do you have here?" There was a cold, threatening edge to Dumbledore's voice that got everyone's attention. The stranger seemed unfazed; his body was relaxed the whole time.

"Let me answer them backwards. I got a letter of _acceptance_ four years ago, so here I am, checking out the school which so graciously accepted me without applying. Is it normal? Can I just say I accepted you for something you didn't sign up for? I'm just curious, you know, because if it is true, sadly it can be abused. How did I get in? Through the door, obviously. Everyone knows you cannot apparate within the boundary of Hogwarts, and only you can make a portkey here. I gave you a few clue, let's see if you can figure out who I am."

The venerated wizard sat back in his chair, pale as a ghost. _That can't be! He is dead! Who else did not turn up four years ago?_

"I see you figured it out. Let me introduce myself," said the figure as he lowered his hood, showing his unruly, black hair, piercing green eyes and a lightning bolt shaped scar on the forehead. "I am Harry Potter."


	2. Freedom

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I make money with this fic.

**Chapter 2: Freedom**

Clouds gathered on the starless sky above Little Hangleton. The rain poured down to the empty streets as a heavy curtain, hiding everything from prying eyes and ears. You could see only your legs in the darkness; even the light coming from the houses could not penetrate it. Frank Bryce, caretaker of the empty Riddle Manor sat at the window of his living room. He could never sleep in a time like this, not since his leg worked as a barometer. This time it was different. Instead of the pain and stiffness, all he could feel was goose bumps and some tingle, like there was no rain at all. He was about to stand up and go to sleep, seeing as his knee decided to let him sleep when the air in the middle of the room started to _change_. Change would be probably a bad word for it; it solidified and took the shape of a door-sized black rectangle. Frank could only stand open mouthed as this hole took form; he didn't even blink when he noticed that the floor connected to a balcony on the other side. It was probably the most surreal thing he ever saw; a blindingly white marble balcony complete with barriers on three sides. In the middle of the small space sat in a circle three young woman and a man, seemingly asleep.

"_Stupefy!_" The last thing he saw was a pair of ice-blue eyes staring right back at him.

The four strangers stepped through the gap, each shuddering when they arrived on the other side.

"The clock just started to tick," said the black-haired girl. "Why are you grinning like an idiot?"

"Can't you feel it?" asked the man. "I feel wonderful. I'm _free_!"

"We should go through this once again."

"Not again, Daphne! We did nothing else for a _week_!" said the girl with her wand out.

"We cannot make a mistake. We have no third chance. Do you wish to see your aunt alive?" Daphne asked.

"Now that was a low blow, but we get it," the man answered. "You check out the Department of Mysteries, Susan can contact her aunt and Ginny here can make the dummies. I will go to headquarters, and if it is in an acceptable condition, I go free Sirius. We will meet there, or wherever my Patronus tells you to go. Satisfied?"

"Thank you _so_ much, Harry, just don't blame me when something goes wrong."

Before she could even finish, Harry already disappeared.

-oOoOo-

To say that Sirius Black was not a happy man would be like saying that the Pacific Ocean is big. Sirius Black has not been more miserable in his entire life. One of his best friends betrayed them all, got him here, and it was entirely his fault. It was his fault he could not see his godson anymore. The thought that he was innocent was not enough to suppress his guilt. He just started another of his self-berating sessions as Padfoot when something felt different. It wasn't the cold feeling the Dementors brought with them, nor was it the feeling of weakness he felt stronger every day. This was outside of his body, calling him, taunting him, dancing around him. It felt powerful, full of hope, yet it was distant; he knew he could never reach it no matter how hard he tried. _So I finally went mad. Took me long enough._ His train of thoughts came to an abrupt halt when he felt himself changing back to his human form. _What the…_

"Hello, Sirius." a male voice interrupted his thought.

He turned his head so fast you could hear the bones snap. The sound came from a glassy figure, too distant to recognise his features.

"I give up. Now I can see things," he tried to say, but thanks to the long term effects of not speaking, he wasn't entirely sure his guest understood.

"You know, I could be a ghost. Why do I need to be only in your head?" came the reply.

"Well, what does it matter? You cannot help me either way. Just leave me and my misery alone."

"My thoughts exactly. Either way, I think I can help you realize and accept certain things before it is too late."

"Yeah? And what _things_ would that be?"

"That it was Peter's fault, not yours. He chose to become a Death Eater. That it was James' and Lily's fault just as much as yours, because they agreed with you. You did not force them, they trusted Peter too. And mainly, that it was Albus Dumbledore's fault."

"Now, how would that be his fault? The rest I can understand, hell, with time even accept. But what did Dumbledore do?" he asked perplexed.

"It is not what he did; it is what he didn't do. He is a Master Legilimens, but you already knew that. So how could Peter deceive him? I know, I know, it is illegal to read someone else's mind without permission. But he was the caster of the Fidelius, he knew you were innocent, yet he did nothing to help you get out of here."

"Well, thank you for the summary, but I still feel like shit."

"And you should. I would be concerned about you, living here in the past five years and not feeling like shit. That is not all I wish to tell you. You were not to be blamed for the death of your best friend, but you are guilty of abandoning your godson. You put your need for revenge before his wellbeing, and now you both are miserable. But you knew that already. I am curious though; would you do any different, had you another chance?"

"What does it matter? Either a ghost or my imagination, you can't free me. So what's the point?"

"Humour me. You can't lose anything by answering a simple question."

"Yes, I would do differently. I would do almost anything to see Harry again. Are you happy now?"

"Yes, I am. I gave you much to think about, but I have one last gift to you before I depart."

"Gift? What gift?" a very surprised Sirius asked.

"Sleep. You will find it when you wake up." With that, the apparition faded from his view. He found he could no longer open his eyes, and before he knew it, he was fast asleep.

-oOoOo-

Amelia Bones just arrived at the corridor leading to the Department of Mysteries. She got an urgent message from one of the Unspeakables requesting her presence. Said Unspeakable – or another, you could never tell with them – was waiting for her just outside of the door.

"Thank you for coming on such a short notice. Please come with me, I will tell you more inside." Even the voice was indescribable; you couldn't even tell if it was a man or a woman. That unsettled out Amelia just a bit; she liked to know who was in the room with her, a habit she picked up in the last war.

They went through the door to a circular room with black walls and floor. Amelia had never been here before, only a select few could enter that door outside of the Unspeakables. The moment she closed the door, the torches and the doors on the wall started to spin. And they spun and spun and she felt sick by the time it stopped.

"Is it always like this?" she asked in a dying voice.

"You get used to it. Sorry, I should have warned you. We rarely get visitors. Time chamber!" It spoke the last part clearly and confidently and one of the many identical doors swung open to reveal a large room with sparkling windows all over its walls. After they both entered, her guide closed and warded the door. The Unspeakable then started to chant in a beautiful language, it sounded like one very long melodic word. She spotted another cloaked figure just then; for some reason it looked very stiff. She wondered why she was there in the first place, but she waited patiently for her guide to finish.

"That was a good bit of work," said the disguised person next to her. Even with the voice modification, she could hear its fatigue in its voice. "You are probably wondering why you are here. You will find a thin brown book in that corner. Please bring it here. I have to sit for a few minutes."

She was taken aback by the request; there were, after all, two of them. She did it anyway; they managed to awaken her curiosity. She just stood dumbfounded before the book when she glanced at it; it wasn't anything special, just a leather-bound slim book. It was lying wide open on a stand created for that very purpose. What made her pause was the content of the book, the last line of the last non-blank page, to be precise.

'_Daphne Greengrass, Susan Bones, Ginevra Weasley, Harry Potter, at 11:47 PM, 20th September, 1986'_

"What am I looking at? Is this why you wanted to talk to me?"

"We are in the Time Chamber. It was created to observe and study the timeline, and detect any anomaly within it. That book notes down everyone who alter the timeline – in other words, all the time travellers. We brought you here to show you the evidence. Otherwise you wouldn't believe me when I tell you that I am Daphne and I came from the future. Am I right, Susan?"

With that they both lowered their hoods. Amelia just stood there; this was _not_ what she was expecting.

"Let me get this straight. You four came back in time?" Seeing them nod, she continued. "Then you must have had your reasons. You then broke into here, just to prove me that this is true?"

"Of course not! This is only a part of it," said a still very stiff Susan. _At least I know why she acted that way, she thought._ "We also have to search for prophecies and to steal a time-turner."

"Look, I sealed the room, but we have very little time. I still have to erase our names from that book, or we will be in big trouble. Meet us at the telephone box tomorrow after work. Have some Veritaserum with you." With that, Daphne dropped the barriers she placed at the door and let her out.

-oOoOo-

"So you were imprisoned by false charges and without a trial. It was Fudge's idea, because 'It will show the public what they wish to see,' and Dumbledore actually went with it. He then placed Harry with his abusive relatives. Is that all?" Amelia was angry. The others in the room could tell by only listening to her.

"In a nutshell, yes. Of course there are a lot of things you don't know yet, but you got the impression. The point is Fudge will choose what he thinks the public wants every time. As unbelievable as it sounds, he was right all along. That was what the public wanted to hear." Ginny explained. "Tomorrow we will free young Harry from his prison. You should prepare for a hell of a political battle; when they find out he is '_dead'_, everyone will want to blame someone else."

"Why did you tell me all this? I can't use any of this information. I can't do anything about it."

"Well, obviously Susan wanted to see you. You would be able to help coordinate the manhunt against Sirius, when we remove his dummy from Azkaban." Harry explained. "You can also train the young ones once they are with us."

"You know, you never told what you are exactly. You always evade the subject," Sirius accused.

"Fine, fine, I will tell. We already had a plan, get back around here and do some good. Problem was we didn't know how to get here. Daphne had connections in the Department of Mysteries, Time division. She got a visitor badge and managed to get into the Time Room."

"That was where we were?" Amelia asked.

"No, that was the Time Chamber." Daphne corrected. "It is two entirely different section of that Department. Where the Time Chamber is for observing the flow of Time, the Time Room is where they conduct experiments and store the devices they made. They have a small library there full of books on the practical application of Time manipulation. Since they thought I was just some empty-headed, rich and pampered princess, who only wanted to brag about getting into the Department, they let me read some of the books, believing I wouldn't understand anything. I found a ritual in one of those books that was even better than we imagined."

"We studied it extensively, what we need to do, what ingredients we have to use, what will be the sacrifice," Ginny continued. "We than agreed on our goal, and devised a plan. Our first stage is almost complete."

"Every ritual needs a sacrifice." Harry resumed. "Ours needed human sacrifice, specifically the travellers' life. We researched it thoroughly, and determined that it will only need our life and magic, our soul will be intact. In exchange of that, the ritual dragged us back in time and granted a little bonus. For one month – twenty-eight days, to be specific – we are immortal. We have magic in our disposal no one has ever seen. Well, only those who completed the ritual before us. It magnified our magical power, so we can carry out whatever tasks we need to do. We can change our appearance at will, become invisible, go through solid matter and I could count till next week. Don't forget, I said a month. After that month ran out, we will perish. There are also rules, of course, or every second Dark Lord would just go back and kill everyone."

"Our plan is to leave memories behind for our younger selves," said Susan. "We devised something that hopefully can help us chop up the month we have. If we are right, these containers can hold us frozen without our time running."

"You mean you do what you planned as fast as you can and then freeze yourselves? Why?"

"If you have a problem you cannot solve, you can bring one of us out," Daphne said. "We also wish to speak to our younger selves when they are older – well, except for Harry. We decided to let them have their childhood, no need to ruin that. With Harry, Sirius can give him the life he deserves."

"Just promise me you won't spoil me too much," interrupted Harry. "We plan to tell them about us when they can understand why we did this, even young Harry won't know who I really am. After that, well, it is up to them. It will be their lives; we can help only so much."

"Why are you here? What happened to you?" came the next question.

"It is a bit of a long story. First thing you need to know is Voldemort is not dead," started Harry. Both adults shuddered at the mention of the name. "He certainly isn't alive, but he isn't on the other side either. In my fourth year, he used me in a ritual to gain a new body. I managed to kill him for good after what would have been my seventh year; I had to skip that year to manage that. That is nice and good, you want to say, why did you came back? Well, Magical Britain thinks of me as public property. I had no personal life. I was a hero one day, a hiding Dark Lord the second, and an attention seeking prat on the third. I was expected to fulfil their every wish, than get my 'thanks' and get lost. I was expected to marry a pureblood and have children who can do the same. I was praised, slandered, ridiculed, but never a moment was my own. They let go of the captured Death Eaters who claimed they were under the Imperius. They made laws that blatantly favoured the purebloods; they even made some laws specifically for me. That was the last straw; I realized what I did when I saved them. I came back to give this knowledge to young Harry; he can decide then what he will do."

Amelia and Sirius both wore thoughtful expressions. After they took in everything, Amelia continued.

"That explains why _you_ are here. What about you three?"

"He couldn't do this without us. We helped him after the Second Battle, we came up with the plan, and we researched the ritual. We may have our own past to erase, but we all came to help Harry one way or another."

"You should probably get home, it is late," Harry said. "Sirius, please don't blow the house up. I apologise again, but this is the only house we know of that will be uninhabited long enough. We will be back on the morning."

"Where are you going?" asked Sirius.

"Well, some genius forgot to _Obliviate_ the man who saw us arrive; we will also do some Voldemort-hunting." With those parting words, the four young adults disappeared from view.

_A/N:_ Second chapter. It got a little longer than I expected, but there will be another chapter dealing with the past. Thank you all who took the time and post a Review!


	3. Confrontations

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I make money with this fic.

_A/N:_ I updated the first two chapters too - nothing major, just some phrasing.

**Chapter 3: Confrontations**

Severus Snape wore a mask of indifference. It was not because he did not feel anything; on the contrary, a myriad of emotions warred behind his face. Only his exceptional Occlumency could prevent them from showing. There was relief. There was joy. There was sorrow. Shame. Anger. Hate. There was no doubt. When he saw those green eyes – Lily's eyes – he believed that he was Harry Potter. That was all he could think about because his senses came up with him.

The Great Hall was in disorder. Some were yelling, others were asking their neighbours; still others were staring at the newcomer. The only exception to this was Amelia Bones, who sat back in her chair with an expression of amusement.

"Silence." That simple sentence stopped everyone in their movement. It was not particularly loud, only loud enough to be heard everywhere in the hall. Snape could tell that he was used to give commands, he was no different; he even expected every student – and most of the teachers – to obey him. The boy was different; he could see that from the way he held himself. He did not intimidate everyone, like Snape himself; he wasn't your favourite _'grandfather'_, like Dumbledore; and he certainly didn't threaten others with his fame or power. He expected them to follow his commands, as simple as that, and it seemed to work. _Well, no more, boy!_

"I believe I need to be sorted." That set the teachers in motion, and soon he was sitting in the stool, facing the entire school. His three companions stood at the entrance, watching him silently.

"_Hello, Mr Potter. A little late, but pay it no heed. Hmm, curious indeed. I see great potential in you. You could do just fine in any of the Houses, but let's see what else I can find. Bravery, a sharp mind, loyalty and cunning. You have it all, my friend. Where shall I put you?"_

"_You are in my head. Would you not know it already?"_

"_True, but I cannot say what _you_ would decide from your memories alone. Ahh, I found it. That makes it so much easier. Well, it was a pleasure, Mr Potter._ RAVENCLAW!"

The last word was heard by everyone in the Hall, and it met with mixed response. The Ravenclaws – obviously – were very happy with the outcome. The Hufflepuffs were also cheering, even if they were a little surprised. The Gryffindors were clapping politely, but many were glaring at the Ravenclaws; after all, Potter should have been in Gryffindor. The Slytherins received the news with indifference, but overall they were happy because the Gryffs were not.

-oOoOo-

The feast was as hectic as could be expected. The news that Harry Potter was alive did wonders to the students. Most of them discussed the importance of this event while stealing a glimpse from time to time; some of them were openly gazing at him or his companions, who were sitting beside him at the Ravenclaw table. No one tried to sit near him or talk to him – yet.

Snape himself was mulling over the boy. After the news of his death – confirmed by the Headmaster – he finally broke down. The promise to Lily Potter, which made his existence bearable, was broken. He did not protect her son. He has failed. Over the next two years he has come to terms with his past. He realized that he could not hate a six-year-old because he was his father's son. If that would be true, he would have to be hated just as much. So – since James was dead – he placed everything to the one he could: Sirius Black. Then, all of a sudden he escaped. He screamed. He raged. He wanted to go after Black and kill him for everything he did to him, to Lily, to Harry, but the Headmaster held him back every time he tried to go.

At the end of that year, Black managed to capture two students – one of his Slytherins! – and told them his tale, and as proof, gave them a rat. The students – Susan Bones and Daphne Greengrass – came to him and Filius Flitwick, and presented Black's case. He did not want to believe it. Not even after he confirmed it with Veritaserum – on Peter, of course. When they went to the Headmaster, they got a polite 'thank you' and before they could say anything else, they were outside of his office. None of them heard of Peter ever again.

And now, Harry Potter came back, seemingly from the dead. Bones and Greengrass were with him, he could tell. _That means that Amelia knew about it. Since when? Did they help the mutt escaping Azkaban?_

By the end of the Feast, even Snape admitted to himself that he was confused, and he was determined to get some answers. With that thought, he got up from the table and started his journey towards the Headmaster's office.

-oOoOo-

Harry Potter was pleased. His entrance will surely stir up the entire nation – well, at least the wizards and witches – and he became a Ravenclaw. Now he was walking behind Dumbledore towards who-knows-where, where he will be subjected to the special torture of theirs. Nothing involving pain, he was sure of that, but the twinkling eyes, the unfamiliar grounds and superior numbers will be hard to defeat. _Well, at least it's not boring,_ he thought as he walked past a gargoyle. Behind him were his companions, Amelia, and – it seemed – the entire school, albeit only the teachers followed them to the office. After everyone found a place to sit or stand, and the customary lemon drop offering, the interrogation began.

"Well, for once, I do not know what to say. You managed to surprise me, Harry. Tell me, where were you all this time? We all thought you dead. Your appearance will cause quite the upheaval."

"First, I think you should call me Mr Potter. You do not know me. I do not know you. I will tell you that I was in England, no more."

"Harry, surely you…"

"Are you on a first name basis with all the children here, _Albus_, or are you showing favouritism? I hope it is not the latter, because I hate that." Hearing the contempt in his voice, no one doubted his sincerity. A few tried to protest – How dare he call him '_Albus'_? – but the others stilled them.

Dumbledore sighed, as if he was the one suffering there. "Very well, Mr Potter. Will you at least introduce your companions?"

"Introduce? I believe you have met them already. Susan Bones and Daphne Greengrass, you could already guess, as they were not on the train today, and Ginevra Weasley, who you also failed to protect. Let's not forget about Sirius or me, if we are at it, shall we?"

At Ginny's name, most of them recoiled; some even took out their wands.

"You are pathetic, really. Did you investigate it yourselves or you just believed everything the Ministry said? Can you not tell me at least one bit of magic that can make you do things you wouldn't do otherwise? You are condemned a twelve-year-old to Hell, while you let Death Eaters go free! IS there a point to this, Headmaster? If so, please say it. Otherwise, we will be leaving to our dorms."

"Here are a full pardon and an apology from the behalf of the Ministry" said Amelia, while she put said documents before Dumbledore. Seeing his shocked expression, she explained. "I'm sure you already guessed that I knew about it, why does it surprise you that I made everything official? I have the necessary testimonies for both this case and the pending Black trial."

"What do you mean, pending trial?" asked someone from the back of the room. "Black was convicted and imprisoned."

"Is that so? Please, tell me, when did it happen? Were you there? From Ministry files, he was never given a trial, so he never was convicted."

"I think that we got away from the point," interrupted Harry. "Do you want something from us?"

"Well, surely, Miss Weasley's…"

"Parents will be here tomorrow. I am sure that you can speak to the students, so there will be no '_retribution'_ of any kind. Anything else?"

Seeing the defeated look the Headmaster gave them, the foursome departed from the circular office. After a few minutes they just walked in silence, until they arrived at a bare wall in the seventh floor.

"So, will you go back to your common room?"

"Don't be stupid. I may be pardoned, but they still don't know about it. I'm staying."

"Me too," Susan said. "They will alternate between apologising for not believing me and pestering me about you. I need this night off. Daph?"

"I will stay also. I don't know how they received that I was with you… I can say that I just want to use you, but I don't know how many will believe. It is easier to stay away for now."

"Well, then we need a room for four." With that, he started pacing in front of the wall.

-oOoOo-

It has been over a week since his return. In the castle, things just started to go back to normal. Over that short period of time he managed to establish an image about himself. He was polite to everyone who spoke to him, but he refused to elaborate about his past. Most of his problem came from the fangirls; some of them just couldn't take no for an answer. Through his three companions he managed to make new acquaintances, and he managed to get through to some people, that staring at him was a bad idea.

Outside of the school was another matter. The press got a field week already, and it wouldn't stop for the foreseeable future. They published every theory there was about his disappearance, some sketches made of him – some of them came from students – and, of course, the reaction of the Ministry about Ginny, Sirius and his reappearance.

The teachers were divided. Some of them were frosty, and awarded only the bare minimum points when necessary, probably mad at him because his discussion with the Headmaster. Others were neutral, betraying nothing. Perhaps they took him seriously when he said he hated favouritism. What none of them could dispute was his vast knowledge about anything a fifth year should know. It was not unusual for a Ravenclaw to advance a year during their years at Hogwarts, but Harry showed them that he could take his NEWT today and pass every subject with an acceptable.

Harry himself was at the Great Hall, eating breakfast when three familiar voices interrupted his musings.

"Morning, Harry."

"Morning, Susan, Ginny, Daphne."

"You look troubled. What's wrong?" asked Ginny as she took a seat next to him

"Dumbledore will want to speak with me. Probably next week. The Minister will announce that my disappearance was his idea, that we are best friends and that I will of course support him. That will be next week also. I have access the library here, and I have to conduct the experiment we spoke about tomorrow. Let me think… oh yes, the ritual! We will need to do it on the weekend; it will give us the best chance."

"Well, can we help some?" asked Daphne from across.

"If you so wish… you can research the time before Merlin. That would be great, actually, and the sooner the better."

"What about me? I don't have anything to do," pouted Susan.

"You can tell me all about magical theory. So, how are you faring with your housemates?"

"You know about Puffs, they are mortified. They take pride in their loyalty, yet they abandoned me. They would do anything if I asked – well, anything except stop pestering me."

"Slytherin will leave me alone. They know about your discussion with Dumbledore, and they want an ambassador with you. So as long as I'm useful, they are okay with it."

"Gin? Are they giving you any trouble?"

"Well, my family was glad to see me, and they have been very helpful. The older ones knew me a little, and they know how easily someone can possess you. The younger ones – they grew up believing I was evil, so it is hard for them to adapt. Don't worry, if I get in trouble, you will be the first to know."

"Good to know, Gin. Are you coming, Susan? We will be late from Potions."

-oOoOo-

"Fred! George! Stop!"

"Harry! Please don't-"

"-sneak up on us!"

"You gave us-"

"-quite a start. What-"

"can we do for-"

"-you today?"

"Would you stop?" snapped Harry. "It bloody hurts to focus on you guys. Follow me."

"Relax, Harry," said the one on the left as they started walking next to Harry. "Where is Gin-Gin?"

"She seems so attached to you, it is rare to see any of you apart outside classes."

"Don't get us wrong, we are glad you got her out of Azkaban."

"But we are her older brothers… at least _some_ of her older brothers, and we were wondering…"

"What do you want to do with her?"

"Because… we are pretty sure what she wants to do with you, and… that would make any bloke uncomfortable… I mean the sister part, not the action part."

"What we are trying to say is… don't hurt her."

Seeing Harry smiling after their little speech made them a little uncomfortable. Did they say something wrong? Were they not intimidating enough? A minute passed in awkward silence before they arrived at a mirror.

"After you, gentleman," said Harry, and they complied. The other side of the mirror was a narrow corridor which led to a little chamber. After they took a seat Harry started speaking.

"First of all, I have been expecting this little talk for some time. Don't worry, you did well, I'm just not the one who shows it. I got my gruel from Astoria, Daphne's sister a few days ago. Don't worry; I'm not leading them on. They talk with each other, you know, so it wouldn't work anyways. But to more pressing matters; you have, or once had something of mine, and I want it back."

"So you don't know if we passed it on? What do we have that is yours? We have almost nothing!"

"I will let you figure it out; the clues are in this very room. If you cannot find out what I seek within a week, come to me and ask about it. However, if the item I seek is presented to me within the week, I will reward you generously." With that declaration, Harry left the room where they came from, leaving them a seemingly empty chamber.

_A/N:_ Third chapter, finally out. I honestly thought I would manage one chapter per week, and I will try to update it frequently, but there is a chance this will be a slow-update fic (monthly, maybe). Anyways, here is the newest chapter, enjoy yourselves. Thank you all who took the time and post a Review!


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